A Senseless Shooting: Where Are the Responsible Black Parents?

I’m weary of writing about young black children being gunned down in the prime of their lives; senseless shootings after silly arguments that result in gunfire and a trail of tears.

On Thursday, it happened again: a 14-year-old student was shot outside an Atlanta middle school and another student was arrested by police. Atlanta police said they arrived at Price Middle School in southeast Atlanta at 1:50 p.m. and found a 14-year-old boy shot in the back of the neck.

The school was on lockdown Thursday afternoon and a teacher was injured after being trampled during the chaos following the shooting.

I don’t know why the 14-year-old boy was shot, but does it matter? Was the argument worth trying to take the life of a young boy?

It’s never worth it.

While lawmakers and right-wing members of The National Rifle Association debate the wisdom of gun control, African Americans have a more pressing issue to address: Our young black boys are killing each other at a rate that is causing seasoned cops to cringe.

Sure, we need stricter laws on gun purchases and we need to get assault weapons off the streets, but some black parents also need to start taking responsibility for their teenagers who can only resolve their schoolyard disputes by picking up a gun.

Remember when Comedian Bill Cosby was criticized by black folks for suggesting that there are some horrible black parents in America who allow their children to grow up to be thugs?

He was right.

How many more young black children have to die before black folks admit that bad parenting is partly responsible for the gun violence in black neighborhoods?